Fences and fence gates typically are installed in outdoor areas, such as lawns, yards, gardens outdoor decks, and so forth. A fence or a fence gate includes one or more posts fixed to the ground, an upright coupled to each post, and rails coupled to the upright.
Fences are often installed around swimming pools in order to control physical access to the pool. In particular, a goal of the fence is to prevent young children from entering a pool area without adult supervision, because of a risk of drowning. Similarly, the fence may be used to prevent children, who have been allowed to be in the pool area, from leaving the pool area without adult supervision. Such fences may also be mandated by local ordinances around a swimming pool. Usage of a fence in this way is not limited to swimming pools, but also may be used around substantially any attractive nuisance that could be dangerous if not properly supervised.
The fence will include a gate to allow persons to enter and to exit the pool area. A conventional latch or doorknob to keep the gate closed suffers drawbacks such as being reachable by small children or, in the case of a latch, may be prone to not being closed securely. The gate should be operable by adults but not by children. Furthermore, it is not unusual for adults using a swimming pool to leave and reenter several times, e.g., to get drinks or food, check on something within a house, and so forth. Such persons often do not carry keys.
Thus, there is a need for a gate latch and a way to operate the gate latch that is simple for adults, yet is difficult or impossible for young children to operate.